Food and condiment container

ABSTRACT

A food container comprising an inter-engaged first receptacle (intended for receiving a primary food product) and receptacle holder, wherein when the receptacle holder is engaged with the first receptacle, the receptacle holder and the first receptacle define an aperture for receiving and retaining a second receptacle (intended for receiving a condiment). The means for inter-engagement are preferably but not necessarily corresponding slots in each of the first receptacle and receptacle holder.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to food containers, and more particularlyto disposable food containers.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

It is very well known in the food services industry, and in particularthe fact food industry, to utilize food containers that are simple andinexpensive to produce, and disposable, as well. For example, frenchfries are often sold to the public in a paper or cardboard container,which container can be disposed of once the french fries have beenconsumed. In addition, condiments such as ketchup nave become popularadditions which are seen to enhance the flavour of the food product.

However, the consumer is usually presented with multiple containers forthe food product, condiment, etc. As this plurality of containers can bedifficult to manipulate in some contexts, such as when eating in a motorvehicle, the consumer will often apply the condiment directly to thefood product, often resulting in a soggy food product. In addition, theuse of condiments in a motor vehicle or some other contexts can resultin an undesirable mess should the condiment spill or drip onto adjacentsurfaces or clothing given the difficulty of effectively manipulating acondiment packet or cup.

Given this and other needs in the food services industry, a variety ofcontainer designs have been created. Numerous patents and patentapplications have been published for container designs, including U.S.Pat. No. 4,854,466 to Lane, Jr.; U.S. Pat. No. 5,417,364 to Shaw; U.S.Pat. No. 5,429,262 to Sharkey; U.S. Pat. No. 6,076,700 to Manges; U.S.Pat. No. 6,102,208 to Huang; U.S. Pat. No. 6,152,362 to Rosenfeld; U.S.Pat. No. 6,182,890 to Sattler et al.; U.S. Pat. No. 6,216,946 to Cai;U.S. Pat. No. 6,230,959 to Spransy; U.S. Pat. No. 6,394,297 to Nance;U.S. Pat. No. 6,612,485 to Lackner et al.; U.S. Pat. No. 6,755,305 toNance; and U.S. patent application Ser. No. 09/758,069 to Fear et al.;U.S. patent applications Ser. No. 09/813,390 to Ciarrochi, Jr.; and U.S.patent application Ser. No. 10,217,591 to Krueger et al.

While intended to address this pressing need in the food servicesindustry, many of the designs are relatively complicated and expensiveto produce. In addition, most require a significant alteration of thestandard food container, which is undesirable in an industry driven byvolume production of standard food containers.

What is needed, therefore, is a simple, inexpensive means for providingease of consumption of food products and condiments, while preventingsogginess of the food product and the mess often associated with use ofexisting condiment packaging.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present invention accordingly seeks to provide a simple, inexpensivefood container which keeps the food product and condiment isolatedduring consumption (except for dipping of the food product by theconsumer in the condiment). In addition, some embodiments of the presentinvention are intended to provide advertising space which can off-set atleast some of the container manufacturing costs.

According to a first aspect of the present invention, then, there isprovided a food container comprising:

a first receptacle;

a second receptacle; and

a receptacle holder having first engagement means for engaging the firstreceptacle;

wherein when the receptacle holder is engaged with the first receptacle,the receptacle holder and the first receptacle define an aperture forreceiving and retaining the second receptacle.

In exemplary embodiments of the first aspect the first engagement meanspreferably comprise a first slot extending partially through thereceptacle holder, and a second slot extending partially through thereceptacle holder at a location spaced from the first slot, the firstand second slots for engaging a lip of the first receptacle.

In some embodiments, the food container may further comprise secondengagement means on the first receptacle, the first engagement means andthe second engagement means then configured to inter-engage. The firstengagement means would then preferably comprise a first slot extendingpartially through the receptacle holder, and a second slot extendingpartially through the receptacle holder at a location spaced from thefirst slot, and the second engagement means would comprise at least onereceiving slot extending partially through a surface of the firstreceptacle. Most preferably, the second engagement means would comprisea third slot extending partially through a surface of the receptacleholder, and a fourth slot extending partially through the surface of thereceptacle holder at a location spaced from the third slot, the firstslot for inter-engaging with the third slot, and the second slot forinter-engaging with the fourth slot.

According to a second aspect of the present invention there is provideda food container comprising:

a first receptacle;

a second receptacle: and

-   -   a receptacle holder,    -   wherein the first receptacle has first engagement means for        engaging the receptacle holder, and    -   wherein when the receptacle holder is engaged with the first        receptacle, the receptacle holder and the first receptacle        define an aperture for receiving and retaining the second        receptacle.

According to a third aspect of the present invention there is provided afirst food receptacle comprising engagement means for receiving areceptacle holder, engagement of the receptacle holder and the firstfood receptacle for defining an aperture for receiving and retaining asecond food receptacle.

According to a fourth aspect of the present invention there is provideda food receptacle holder comprising engagement means for engaging with afirst food receptacle, engagement of the receptacle holder and the firstfood receptacle for defining an aperture for receiving and retaining asecond food receptacle.

In preferred embodiments of the present invention the second receptaclecomprises a peripheral lip for abutting the receptacle holder to assistin the retaining of the second receptacle, and the receptacle holdercomprises an outwardly disposed surface for receiving and displaying aprinted image.

The food container and components are preferably composed of paper of anappropriate weight and flexibility, being light and durable.

As can be seen, food containers in accordance with the present inventioncan help prevent condiment waste and mess, and can employ a very simpledesign enabling extremely low cost production, which is very importantin the fast food industry. Also, banner advertising on the outwardlydisposed surface is a possibility, so some of the production costs canbe off-set with advertising revenue. As the food container can be set ina cup holder in a motor vehicle, the present invention can support abetter hands-free environment in the vehicle resulting in cleanlinessand safety benefits.

As fast food restaurants often run promotions to highlight theirproducts, the advertising space on the receptacle holder can presentsignificant benefits, in terms of promoting both new and existingproduct lines as well as being used as coupon space for specials. Inaddition, a food container according to the present invention canprovide a medium for advertising films, sports teams, televisionprogramming, websites, products, and individuals such as recordingartists and sports figures, which can generate advertising revenue forthe fast food restaurant. The small yet potentially effectiveadvertising surface allows both franchisors and franchisees theopportunity to broaden the base of potential advertising revenue toinclude companies that may not have the budget for large-scale campaignsthat would require resurfacing the existing food container.

Another potential benefit of a food container according to the presentinvention is that it can save money with respect to the amount ofcondiment provided to the customer. It is known in the fast foodindustry that there is significant waste when the condiment is appliedto sandwich wrappers, and consumers generally ask for more condimentsthan are truly necessary in anticipation of the expected wasteassociated with providing them their condiment of choice. Condiment usecan e made more efficient when the present invention is utilized.

One other concern mentioned above is that condiments, when applieddirectly, can result in sogginess of the food product. It is generallyunderstood that food products such as french fries are preferred to behot and crisp, as opposed to saturated in ketchup. A food containeraccording to the present invention can prevent the direct coating offood products with condiments, thereby helping prevent sogginess of thefood product.

A detailed description of exemplary embodiments of the present inventionis given in the following. It is to be understood, however, that theinvention is not to be construed as limited to these embodiments.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

In the accompanying drawings, which illustrate exemplary embodiments ofthe present invention:

FIG. 1 is a front perspective view of a food and condiment containeraccording to the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a front elevation view of the embodiment of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 Is a side elevation view of the embodiment of FIG. 1;

FIG. 4 is a top plan view of the embodiment of FIG. 1;

FIG. 5 is a front perspective view of a food receptacle according to thepresent invention;

FIG. 6 is a front elevation view of the embodiment of FIG. 5;

FIG. 7 a is a front elevation view of a condiment receptacle holderaccording to the present invention;

FIG. 7 b is a front elevation view of an alternative condimentreceptacle holder according to the present invention;

FIG. 8 a is a front elevation view of the condiment receptacle holder ofFIG. 7 a with exemplary measurements: and

FIG. 8 b is a front elevation view of the condiment receptacle holder ofFIG. 7 b with exemplary measurements.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF EXEMPLARY EMBODIMENTS

Referring now in detail to the accompanying drawings, there areillustrated exemplary embodiments of a food and condiment container, andcomponents thereof, according to the present invention, the food andcondiment container generally referred to by the numeral 10.

Referring now to FIGS. 1 to 4, there is illustrated an embodiment of afood and condiment container 10 according to the present invention. Thefood and condiment container 10 comprises a food receptacle 12 and acondiment receptacle holder 16. The food receptacle 12 (for receiving afood product such as french fried, not shown) and condiment receptacleholder 16 are engaged such that a condiment receptacle 14 (for receivinga condiment, not shown) can be held in place within an aperture againstthe side of the food receptacle 12. In this embodiment, the condimentreceptacle comprises a lip 30, which is designed to help retain thecondiment receptacle 14 against the side of the food receptacle 12 byresting against a top edge of the condiment receptacle holder 16.

As can be seen in FIGS. 5 and 6, the food receptacle 12 comprises twospaced-apart slots 18 in a front lip 24 of the receptacle 12 The slots18 can be generally vertical, or they can be angled off of the vertical,as would be clear to a person skilled in the art given a desiredcondiment receptacle holder 16 design.

Two embodiments of a condiment receptacle holder 16 according to thepresent invention are set out in FIGS. 7 a and 7 b, with FIGS. 8 a and 8b presenting exemplary measurements for some preferred embodiments. Thecondiment receptacle holder 16 comprises a slot 20 at a first and 26thereof and another slot 20 at a second end 28 thereof. It is to beunderstood that the measurements in FIGS. 8 a and 8 b are forillustrative purposes only and are not intended to limit in any way thescope of the present invention.

Referring now to FIGS. 4 to 8 b, the means for inter-engaging the foodreceptacle 12 and condiment receptacle holder 16 are illustrated inexemplary fashion. The downwardly-oriented slots 20 at the first andsecond ends 26, 28 of the condiment receptacle holder 16 engage with theupwardly-oriented slots 18 on the food receptacle 12, thereby holdingthe food receptacle 12 and condiment receptacle holder 16 together.Although the illustrated embodiments nave corresponding slots on each ofthe food receptacle 12 and condiment receptacle holder 16, it is to beunderstood that one can work the present invention by having slots ineither the food receptacle 12 or the condiment receptacle holder 16, andnot necessarily in both. It is accordingly within the scope of thepresent invention to have a condiment receptacle holder 16 with slots 20for mating with a lip 24 of a standard food receptacle, withoutrequiring any alteration to the standard food receptacle itself.

Alternatively, a food receptacle 12 can be produced in accordance withthe present invention with slots 18, for receiving a condimentreceptacle holder 16 without slots 20.

Referring now to FIGS. 2 and 7 a to 8 b, a particularly beneficialfeature of the present invention is illustrated. The condimentreceptacle holder 16 includes advertising space 22, which can be usedfor any number of useful purposes in the food services business,including new product advertisement and third-party product advertising,as discussed above. In FIGS. 7 a and 8 a, the condiment receptacleholder 16 is a simple sight design, easy to produce but with arelatively limited advertising space 22. However, the condimentreceptacle holder 16, as can be seen in FIGS. 7 b and 8 b, can beincreased in size to enable a much larger advertising space 22. othersizes and forms of condiment receptacle holder 16 will now be obvious toone skilled in the art, and all are intended to be part of the presentinvention.

As can be seen, then, a food container 10 according to the presentinvention is of simple and economical design, and can accordingly beprinted off and cut at virtually any local print shop, enabling ease inaddressing custom or rush orders. No additional packaging wrap will berequired for bulk orders of the condiment receptacle holders 16, therebyreducing shipping and handling costs. In addition, as mentioned above,there will be virtually no material waste during production.

While particular embodiments of the present invention have beendescribed in the foregoing, it is to be understood that otherembodiments are possible within the scope of the invention and areintended to be included herein. It will be clear to any person skilledin the art that modifications of and adjustments to this invention, notshown, are possible without departing from the spirit of the inventionas demonstrated through the exemplary embodiments. The invention istherefore to be considered limited solely by the scope of the appendedclaims.

1. A food container comprising: a first receptacle; a second receptacle;and a receptacle holder having first engagement means for engaging thefirst receptacle; wherein when the receptacle holder is engaged with thefirst receptacle. the receptacle holder and the first receptacle definean aperture for receiving and retaining the second receptacle.
 2. Thefood container of claim 1 further comprising second engagement means onthe first receptacle, the first engagement means and the secondengagement means configured to inter-engage.
 3. The food container ofclaim 1 wherein the first engagement means comprise: a first slotextending partially through the receptacle holder; and a second slotextending partially through the receptacle holder at a location spacedfrom the first slot; the first and second slots for engaging a lip ofthe first receptacle.
 4. The food container of claim 2 wherein: thefirst engagement means comprise: a first slot extending partiallythrough the receptacle holder; and a second slot extending partiallythrough the receptacle holder at a location opened from tho first slot;and the second engagement means comprise at least one receiving slotextending partially through a surface of the first receptacle.
 5. Thefood container of claim 4 wherein the second engagement means comprise:a third slot extending partially through a surface of the receptacleholder; and a fourth slot extending partially through the surface of thereceptacle holder at a location spaced from the third slot; the firstslot for inter-engaging with the third slot, and the second slot forinter-engaging with the fourth slot.
 6. The food container of any one ofclaims 1 to 5 wherein the second receptacle comprises a peripheral lipfor abutting the receptacle holder to assist in the retaining of thesecond receptacle.
 7. The food container of any one of claims 1 to 5wherein the receptacle holder comprises an outwardly disposed surfacefor receiving and displaying a printed image.
 8. A food containercomprising: a first receptacle: a second receptacle; and a receptacleholder, wherein the first receptacle has first engagement means forengaging the receptacle holder; and wherein when the receptacle holderis engaged with the first receptacle, the receptacle holder and thefirst receptacle define an aperture for receiving and retaining thesecond receptacle.
 9. A first food receptacle comprising engagementmeans for receiving a receptacle holder, engagement of the receptacleholder and the first food receptacle for defining an aperture forreceiving and retaining a second food receptacle.
 10. A food receptacleholder comprising engagement means for engaging with a first foodreceptacle, engagement of the receptacle holder and the first foodreceptacle for defining an aperture for receiving and retaining a secondfood receptacle.